Apparatus for applying a top wrapper to a pile of discrete articles



July 12, 1966 H. SHAW ET AL 3,260,033

APPARATUS FOR APPLYING A TOP WRAPPER TO A FILE OF DISCRETE ARTICLESFiled Aug. 21, 1963 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 27 all I 30 73 INVENTORS HARRY SHAWALBERT J. PEARCE BY GEORGE S. BLAIR Attorney July 12, 1966 H. SHAW ET ALAPPARATUS FOR APPLYING A TOP WRAPPER TO A PILE OF DISCRETE ARTICLES 5Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Aug. 21, 1963 INVENTORS ALBERT J. P BY GEORGE S.BLAIR Attorney July 12, 1966 H. SHAW ET AL APPARATUS FOR APPLYING A TOPWRAPPER TO A PILE 0F DISCRETE ARTICLES 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed Aug. 21,1965 INVENTORS HARRY SHAW ALBERT J. PEARCE BY GEORGE s. BLAIR AttorneyJuly 12, 1966 H. SHAW ET AL 3,260,033

APPARATUS FOR APPLYING A TOP WRAPPER TO A FILE OF DISCRETE ARTICLESFiled Aug. 21, 1963 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 FIG. 6

INVENTORS HARRY SHAW ALBERT J. PEARCE GEORGE S. BLAIR Atforn e y July12, 1966 Filed Aug. 21.

APPARATUS FOR H. SHAW ET AL 3,260,033

APPLYING A TOP WRAPPER TO A PILE OF DI SCRETE ARTICLES 5 Sheets-Sheet 5INVENTORS HARRY SHAW ALBERT J. PEARCE GEORGE S. BLAIR Attorney UnitedStates Patent 44 25 Claims. (Cl. 53-196) This invention relates toapparatus and method to applying a sheet of wrapping material to a topof a pile of relatively flat flexible articles after which the overlyingends of the wrapping material are inserted on opposite sides of the pilebetween predetermined layers of the flat flexible articles to beretained in position by the weight of 'the layers above and hasparticular reference to applying wrapping material to the top of a pileof folded newspapers.

To provide the necessary protection to newspapers during their transitto the newspaper vendors it is customary to wrap them in strong wrappingpaper which is subsequently tied in position by flexible wire or similarmeans. According to common practice newspapers which have been printedand folded are carried to the mailing room on a conveyor and thengathered into piles commonly called lifts. Each lift passes over a sheetof wrapping paper called the bottom wrapper and then both travel alongtogether due to the weight of the lift keeping the bottom wrapper inposition; it is then the custom to place a sheet of material on top ofthe pile, this is the top wrapper. After this the ends of the top andbottom wrappers are folded around the sides and tied in place.

It will be appreciated that the maintenance of the top wrapper inposition prior to the tying operation cannot be accomplished in themanner employed for securing the bottom Wrapper and as a result themethod employed hitherto is manual and comprises locating the topwrapping material simply by folding it in at the sides of the lift, theends being retained by the weight of the newspapers above. Afterwardsthe lift is conveyed to the tying station.

It is desirable to employ a fairly strong wrapping paper to provide thenecessary protection to these bundles of newspapers during transit, butsince such paper possesses a fair degree of resilience, even with themanual method, a certain adeptness must be exercised to make it conformto the required configuration around the lift. It follows that methodsof fixing the wrapping material mechanically by tucking overlying endsin at the sides of the lift have to overcome this tendency of thewrapping material to spring out from the sides of the bundle.

Furthermore, mechanical methods of tucking in the overlying ends have totake into account that the newspapers are folded to form the lift withthe result that whereas two adjacent sides of the bundle present asurface composed of discrete articles easily capable of separation onefrom the other, the other two sides of the lift present a comparativelyuninterrupted surface composed of the individual pages of thenewspapers. Hence, the mechanical means for tucking in the overlyingends of the wrapping material applied to the top of the lift must bedesigned so as to separate cleanly and without damage a predeterminedpair of individual sheets of the newspaper; on the other hand, althoughit is much simpler to separate the individual newspapers on the opposingside because they are defined by the folds, the.retention of thewrapping material between one folded paper and the next simply by theweight of the ones above is difficult because the curvature of the foldpromotes the tendency of the resilient "ice wrapping paper to spring outbefore the effect of the weight of newspapers above can exert therequisite pinc to keep the wrapping paper in place.

It is, therefore, the object of this invention to provide a method andmeans for applying top wrappers to lifts or bundles.

According to this invention apparatus is provided which secures the topwrapper in position on top of the lift, after which the ends of thewrapper depending against the sides of the lift are tucked mechanicallybetween upper and lower portions of the lift.

The invention is hereinafter more particularly described and illustratedby way of example in the accompanying drawings in which:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of a preferred embodiment of theapparatus illustrating the tucking operation;

FIGURE 2 is an elevational view of the apparatus of FIGURE 1 in positionto take the wrapping paper down int-o contact with the lift;

FIGURE 3 is an enlarged perspective view of part of the apparatus ofFIGURE 1 prior to the tucking operation;

FIGURES 4 to 9 are diagrammatic representations in that order of thesequence of operations of the apparatus in Wrapping the top wrappingpaper about the lift.

As shown in FIGURE 1 lifts of printed and folded newspapers 10 travelalong a conventionally supported conveyor 11, either by actuating therollers 12 or by providing the requisite free fall. The lift 10 passesbelow a pair of spaced channel members 13 conveniently supported at oneend by a pair of vertical members 14 attached to one side of theconveyor 11 and at the other end by a pair of vertical members 15 of aside frame 16. A stop 17 actuated by a sensing device 18 is provided onthe roller table to arrest the movement of the lift 10 and position itdirectly below and intermediate of the channel members 13.

Previous to entry of the lift 10 below the channel members 13conventional apparatus is provided to align successive lifts 10 in thesame position on the conveyor 11. A suitable form of such apparatus isshown in FIGURE 1 and comprises a pair of transverse frame members 19attached to the underside of the conveyor 11. A bracket 20 is pivotablymounted at each end of the framemembers 19 and are disposed with respectto the conveyor 11 so that a pair of brackets 20 extends upwards on eachside but spaced therefrom. Each pair of brackets 20 is connected by across piece 21 which is attached to a piston and cylinder structure 22supported by the transverse frame members 19. The upper ends of the pairof brackets 20 on each side of the conveyor 11 are secured to a verticalplate 23 which has sufficient clearance between its lower edge and therollers 12 to enable it to be moved inwards across the face of theconveyor 11. The forward ends of the plates 23 are tapered outwards tofacilitate entry of the lift 10. A sensing device 24 is attached to theconveyor 11 and on contact between the lift 10 and the device 24 thelatter actuates the pistons 22 thus moving the plates 23 inward to exertpressure against the opposed sides of the lift 10 and ensure the samealignment on th conveyor 11.

The wrapping material 25 is shown in FIGURE 1 in the process of beingtucked between an upper and lower portion of the lift 10. The apparatusfor performing the operation of securing the top wrapper 25 in positionon the lift 10 and then tucking the sides of the Wrapping paper 25between the folds of the newspapers will now be described beinggenerally denoted by the numeral 26 in FIGURES 1, 2 and 3. The apparatus26 is carried by the free end of a piston 27 actuated by hydraulicmeans, not shown, in a vertically disposed cylinder 28, the lower end ofwhich is supported by an inverted substantially U shaped bracket 29; anopposed pair of vertical blocks 30 support the ends of the U-shapedbracket 29 and the vertical blocks 30, in turn, securely rest on thespaced channel members 13. The arms of the U-shaped bracket 29 and thevertical blocks 30 have a combined height sufficient for the lowestextremity of the apparatus 26 to clear the spaced channel members 13 atthe upper limit of travel of the piston 27.

Secured to the free end of the piston 27 is a hollow beam 31 disposedtransversely with repect to the direction of travel of the conveyor 11and secured to the underside of the beam 31 is a member 32 disposedlongitudinally with respect to the direction of travel of the conveyor11. Vertical guide rods 33 are attached close to each corner of themember 32 and each guide rod 33 is slidably engageable in an abutment 34attached to the side of the U-shaped bracket 29; the upper ends of theguide rods 33 are secured to the underside of a rectangular plate 35which has an aperture large enough to provide clearance for the cylinder28 which it surrounds. The upwards travel of the rectangular plate 35and hence the upwards tranvel of the piston 27 is limited by the outwardprojection of another rectangular plate 36 surmounting the upper end ofthe cylinder 28.

Disposed beneath the member 32 and also longitudinally with respect tothe direction of travel of the conveyor 11 is a bulb T bar 37 which isconnected to the member 32 by a pair of spaced rods 38, the ends ofwhich are journalled in both the member 32 and the bulb T bar 37 so asto bias them apart by means of springs 39 surounding the spaced rods 38.At one end of the member 32 an angle section 40 is secured which carriesa microswitch 41 positioned in line with a contact 42 located on thebulb T bar 37 below. As shown in FIGURE 3 at least one V-shaped spring43 is attached to the bulb of the T bar 37.

It will be evident from FIGURE 3 that the remainder of the apparatus 26is comprised of identical components on each side of the vertical planetaken along the length of the bulb T bar 37 on both longitudinal sidesof the member 32 and it will be suflicient to described the apparatus 26on one side only, it being understood that the corresponding parts onthe other side will bear the same numerals. It will also be noted byreference to FIGURE 3 that components on one side of a vertical planetaken on the middle of the beam 31 are identical with the components onthe other side of this vertical plane.

Disposed below and parallel to the beam 31 and secured normally to theside of the member 32 is a cylinder 44; a piston 45 projects outwardlyfrom the cylinder 44 and is actuated hydraulically by means not shown,the free end of the piston 45 being attached to an L-shaped bracket 46.A pair of spaced apart bars 47 are attached to the beam 31 intemediateof its .end and the piston 27; the bars 47 extend vertically and eachterminates in a short cross piece 48 disposed parallel to the beam 31.Traversing the cross pieces 48 close to their outward ends is a spindle49 and traversing the inward ends of the cross pieces 48 is anotherspindle 50 projecting from the sides of the cross pieces 48 to asomewhat greater degree than the spindle 49. Pivotably mounted at eachend of the spindle 49 is a first arm 51 projecting inwards and downwardsin the direction of a piston 27, but terminating at a distance somewhatshort thereof. The ends of the first arms 51 are connected by a bracemember 52 and a spring 53 secured to the brace member 52 intermediate ofits ends projects downwards and is connected at its other end to thebeam 31. The downward movement of the arms 51 as a result of the tensionin the spring '53 is arrested by a stop 54 secured to the side of thebars 47.

A second arm 55 is pivotably mounted at the ends of the brace member 52to project downwards clear of the sides of the beam 31 and the cylinder44, and also outward of the piston 27, terminating at a point somedistance above the rollers 12, but below the plane of the bulb T bar 37at the point of lowest travel of the piston 27; adjacent to the lowerend of the second arm 55 and projecting inwards is a pin 56 having apoint sufliciently fine to cleanly separate two sheets of a newspaper.The second arm 55 is movable in a vertical plane parallel to that of thebeam 31 and the ends of the second arm 55 are connected by a bracemember 57.

Pivotably secured to the second arm 55 intermediate of its ends is alink arm 58 projecting downwards and outward with respect to the secondarm 55 but also movable in a vertical plane parallel to that of the beam31; the other end of the link arm 58 is pivotably secured to the side ofthe L-shaped bracket 46.

Pivotably mounted at each end of the spindle 50 is a third arm 59projecting downwards and outward with respect to the piston 27 at anangle somewhat greater than that of the second arm 55 and terminating ata level below that of the cylinder 44 but above the level of terminationof the second arm 55; the third arm 59 is movable in a vertical planeparallel to that of the second arm 55. The lower ends of the third arms59 are connected by a cross bar 60.

Intermediate of the ends of the third arm 59 and secured normallythereto is a member 61 which terminates at a horizontal plane above thatof the beam 31. Traversing the ends of the member 61 is a rod 62, theends of which project beyond the sides of the member 61. A tube 63 isjournalled on the rod 62 intermediate of the ends of the members 61. Aspring tensioned tie rod 64 secured to the projecting end of the rod 62is connected to the side of the plate 35.

Pivotably mounted at the end'of the third arm 59 is a fourth arm 65projecting inwards and downwards with respect to the piston 27 andterminating at a level below that of the second arm 55. The lower endsof the fourth arms 65 are connected by a rod 66 having extensions 67 onwhich are journalled rollers 68; a brace 69 connects the cross bar 60and the rod 66 intermediate of their ends whilst a spring 70 bridges thepivotably connected third arm 59 and fourth arm 65 to bias themtogether, this movement being checked by interaction of the lower partof the brace 69 with the brace 57.

The hollow beam 31 has its upper and lower faces cut away at the ends toaccommodate a pair of plate cams 71, substantially quadrangular inshape, pivotably mounted at the sides of the beam 31; each of the cams71 is biased by a spring 72 which rotates it inwards in a vertical planeto contact the tube 63 which then rides up the inner edge of the cam 71on its continued rotation. On reaching the top of the cam 71 the tube 63starts to ride down the inclined surface ofthe upper edge of the cam 71but the movement of both is arrested due to the frictional effectprovided by the inward action of the spring tensioned tie rod 64. Eachcam 71 projects downwards to a plane where it will intercept the inwardmovement of the L-shaped bracket 46 attached to the piston 27 and tofacilitate engagement the earns 71 are recessed on their outer edges.

As shown more clearly in FIGURE 4 the fourth arm 65 on one side of theplate 35 is preferably connected by resilient means 73, e.g. a rubberband, to the corresponding fourth arm 65 on the other side of the plate35, and hence on the same side with respect to the cylinders 44; therubber band 73 clears the end of the bulb T bar 37.

The wrapping material 25 may be previously placed in position byseparate means but as shown in FIGURE 2 a convenient apparatus toposition the wrapping material 25 above the lift 10 utilizes the channelmembers 13 in co-operation with the side frame 16. The wrapping material25 is Wound around a spindle 74 suitably journalled on brackets 75mounted in the frame 16; as shown a supplementary roll of material isprovided for use when a roll is being removed and inserted in themachine. The wrapping material 25 passes over an idler roller 76 andunder another idler roller 77 and then over a driven roller 78 to enterthe aperture between a pair of spaced pulleys 79 located close to oneend of the channel members 13. A similar pair of pulleys 80 is locatedat the opposite end of the channel members 13 and endless springs 81which travel around the pulleys 79 and 80 are tensioned by smallerpulleys 82 to bring the endless springs 81 into contact. After thewrapping material 25 enters the aperture of the first pair of spacedpulleys 79 it is then gripped lightly but firmly by the endless springs81 and carried along until the end of the wrapping material 25 reachesthe pulleys 80 at which point cutting means 83 actuated by a timingdevice, not shown, severs the Wrapping material 25 which is then held inplace by the springs 81 above the lift 10.

The sequence of operation of the tucking apparatus 26 is illustrateddiagrammatically in FIGURES 4 to 9 read successively. It will beunderstood, however, that initially the apparatus 26 is located in thevertical position shown in FIGURE 2, it being raised to this level bythe piston 27 so that the extremities of the fourth arms 65 are clear ofthe channel members 13. As already described the Wrapping material 25 isfed in between the ends of the springs 81 after it has been severed bythe cutting means 83 in response to a timing device, not shown, the sametiming device activating the supply of hydraulic fluid to the cylinder28 land the bulb T bar 37 which then starts to travel down in responseto the downward movement of the piston 27. Since the wrapping paper 25is held lightly between the endless springs 81 the pressure of the bulbT bar 37 is sufficient to release the wrapping material 25 from thesprings 81 and it is then taken down by rapid movement to be held inplace by the T bar 37 against the top of the lift 10. The rubber band 73connecting the ends of the corresponding fourth arms 65 assists inconforming the Wrapping material 25 over the top and sides of the lift10. The apparatus 26 is now in the operating position shown in FIGURE 4.

Further pressure of the piston 27 causes the spaced rods 38 to move intheir journals with further downward movement of the plate 35 whichbrings the microswitch 41 into touch with its contact 42 on the bulb Tbar 37 to activate the exhaustion of the fluid from the horizontalcylinders 44. The pistons 45 start to move inwards with the result thatthe link arms 58 activate the second arms 55 towards the side of thelift 10, as shown in FIG- URE 5 and the pins 56 effect the initialseparation of an upper part of the lift from a lower part. In thisprocess the fourth arms 65 due to their being pivoted 7 On furthermovement of the second arms 55 inwards a lifting action takes place atthe edges of the lift 10 mainly due to the movement of the first arms 51about their pivots but also due in part to arcuate movement of the lowerend of the second arms 55. As a result of this lifting action the lift10 is divided into an upper and a'lower part; in the preferredembodiment the upward movement of the edges of the lift 10 isindividually contained by the V-shaped spring 43. During this liftingmovement, the culmination of which is shown in FIG- URE 6, the fourtharms 65 further rotate towards a substantially horizontal plane locatedbetween the undersurface of the upper part of the lift 10 and the uppersurface of the lower part of the lift 10. After sufficient lift has beeneffected by the second arm 55 the brackets 13 strike the cams 71rotating them outward thereby releasing the spring tensioned tie bars64. As a result the fourth arms 65 move rapidly inwards to effect atucking action of the wrapping paper 25 between the upper and lower partof the lift 10 as illustrated in FIGURE 7. By the time this has beeneffected the pistons 45 have reached the end of their inward travel andstart to return, with the result that the second arms 55 move outwardsand downwards. Due to the pressure exerted by the cross brace members 57against the vertical brace members 69 the fourth arms 65 also moveoutwards and they will have a downwards motion due to rotation about theends of the arms 65. The movement outwards and downwards of both thesecond arm 55 and the fourth arm 65 results in maintenance of the tuckedwrapping paper 25 in place due to the effect of the weight of the upperpart of the lift 10.

On sufficient movement outward of the pistons 45 the earns 71 are freeto rotate inwards and the tubes 63 ride upwards'on the inner edge of theearns 71 to pass over the top and then engage with the inclined upperedge. After the pistons 45 have reached the end of their travel theapparatus 26 is in the position shown in FIGURE 9 after which it ismoved vertically to the position shown in FIGURE 2.

While certain embodiments have been illustrated and described for thepurpose of disclosure, it will be understood that the invention is notlimited thereto, but con templates such modifications and otherembodiments as may be utilized without departing from the invention.

The embodiments of the invention in which an exclusive privilege orproperty is claimed are defined as follows:

1. Apparatus for securing a length of wrapping paper over the top andopposed sides of a pile of discrete articles, comprising, first meansfor applying a mid portion of said wrapping paper against the top ofsaid pile, with end portions of said wrapping paper depending againstsaid sides, means responsive to actuation of said first means forseparating an upper part of said pile from a lower part at least at theedges thereof and means responsive to separating said upper part fromsaid lower part for tucking said end portions between said separatedupper part and said lower part.

2. In combination a conveyor, driving means for said conveyor, a pile ofdiscrete articles carried by said conveyor, stop means for terminatingthe movement of said pile on said conveyor, support means surmountingsaid conveyor and positioned above said pile arrested by said stopmeans, means for feeding a web of wrapping material above said arrestedpile, means carried by said support means and positioned above said webof Wrapping material responsive to said feeding means for applying a midportion of said wrapping material against the top of said pile with endportions of said wrapping paper depending about said sides, meansresponsive to actuation of said application means for separating anupper part of said pile from a lower part at least at the edges thereof,means responsive to separation of said upper part for tucking said endportions between said separated upper A part and said lower part.

3. Apparatus according to claim 1 wherein the pile of discrete articlesis a lift of folded newspapers.

4. Apparatus according to claim 2 having means for aligning saidarticles on said conveyor. 5. Apparatus for securing a length ofwrapping paper over the top and opposed sides of a pile of discretearticles comrising, a substantially horizontal member positioned abovesaid wrapping paper and in a vertical plane parallel to said sides ofsaid pile, means secured to said member for activating said member in asubstantially vertical plane whereby said member bears said wrappingpaper against the top of said pile, means for supporting said activatingmeans, means responsive to said activating means for separating at saidsides an upper part ofsaid pile from a lower part at least at the edgesthereof and means responsive to separation of said upper part fortucking said end portions between said separated upper part and saidlower part.

6. Apparatus for securing a length of wrapping paper over the top andopposed sides of a pile of discrete articles, comprising, asubstantially horizontal member pos itioned above said wrapping paperand in a vertical plane parallel to said sides of said pile, asubstantially vertical first piston and cylinder structure positionedabove said pile, said piston being connected to said member, meanssupporting said cylinder, means for actuating said piston in saidcylinder whereby said member bears said wrapping paper against the topof said pile, means responsive to application of said wrapping paperagainst the top of said pile for separating at said sides an upper partof said pile from a lower part at least at the edges thereof and meansresponsive to separation of said upper part for tucking said endportions between said separated upper part and said lower part.

7. Apparatus for securing a length of wrapping paper over the top andopposed sides of a pile of discrete articles, comprising, first meansfor applying a mid portion of said wrapping paper against the top ofsaid pile with end portions of said wrapping paper depending about saidsides, substantially vertical support means carried by said first mean-sand spaced therefrom, a first arm pivotably attached to the upper end ofsaid vertical support means and directed downwards and inwards towardssaid first means, a second arm pivotably attached to the lower end ofsaid first arm and depending outwards and downwards with respect to saidfirst means and terminating in a horizontal plane between the top andbottom of said pile, point means adjacent to the lower end of said armfacing towards said pile, means responsive to said first means foractuating said second arm towards said pile whereby said point meansseparates an upper part and a lower part of said pile and meansresponsive to separating said upper part from said lower part fortucking said end portions between said separated upper part and saidlower part.

8. Apparatus for securing a length of wrapping paper over the top andopposed sides of a pile of discrete articles, comprising, first meansfor applying a mid portion of said wrapping paper against the top ofsaid pile with end portions of said wrapping paper depending about saidsides, a substantially horizontal member disposed in a plane at rightangles to said sides of said pile and secured to said first means, avertical member secured to said horizontal member depending upwards andspaced from said first means, a first arm pivotably attached to theupper end of said vertical member and directed downwards and inwardstowards said first means, a second arm pivotably attached to the lowerend of said first arm and depending outwards and downwards with respectto said first means and terminating in a horizontal plane between thetop and bottom of said pile, point means adjacent to the lower end ofsaid second arm facing towards said pile, means responsive to said firstmeans for actuating said second arm towards said pile whereby said pointmeans separates an upper part and a lower part of said pile and meansresponsive to separating said upper part from said lower part fortucking said end portions between said separated upper part and saidlower part.

9. Apparatus for securing a length of wrapping paper over the top andopposed sides of a pile of discrete articles, comprising, first meansfor applying a mid portion -of said wrapping paper against the top ofsaid pile with I lower end of said first arm and depending outwards anddownwards with respect to said first means and terminating in ahorizontal plane between the top and bottom of said pile, point meansadjacent to the lower end of said second arm facing towards said pile, alink arm secured to said second arm intermediate of its ends anddirected outwards and downwards with respect to first means, meansresponsive to said first means for actuating the other end of said linkarm whereby on inward-movement thereof said second arm moves towardssaid pile and said point means separates an upper part and lower part ofsaid pile at said sides and means responsive to separating said upperpart from said lower part for tucking said end portion between saidseparated upper part and said lower part.

10. Apparatus for securing a length of wrapping paper over the top andopposed sides of a pile of discrete articles, comprising, first meansfor applying a mid portion of said wrapping paper against the top ofsaid pile with end portions of said wrapping paper depending about saidsides, substantially vertical support means carried by said first meansbut spaced therefrom, a first arm pivotably attached to the upper end ofsaid vertical support means and directed downwards and inwards towardssaid application means, a second arm pivotably attached to the lower endof said first arm and depending outwards and downwards with respect tosaid application means and terminating in a horizontal plane between thetop and bottom of said pile, point means adjacent to the lower end ofsaid second arm facing towards said pile, a link arm secured to saidsecond arm intermediate of its ends and directed outwards and downwardswith respect to first means, a second cylinder carried by said firstmeans disposed above but at substantially right angles to said side ofsaid pile, a piston in said cylinder, the free end of which is attachedto the other end of said link arm, means responsive to said first meansfor actuating said piston whereby on inward movement thereof said linkarm moves inwards and upwards to move said second arm towards said pileand said point means separates an upper part and a lower part of saidpile at said sides and means responsive to separating said upper partfrom said lower part for tucking said end portions between saidseparated upper part and said lower part.

11. Apparatus for securing a length of wrapping paper over the top andopposed sides of a pile of discrete articles, comprising, asubstantially horizontal member positioned above said wrapping paper andparallel to said sides of said pile, means for activating said member ina substantially vertical plane whereby said member bears said wrappingpaper against the top of said pile, means for supporting said activatingmeans, means responsive to said activating means for separating an upperpar-t of said pile from a lower part at least at the edges thereof,means responsive to separation of said upper part for tucking said endportions between said separated upper part and said lower part,connecting said first horizontal member to said activating means asecond horizontal member positioned in the same verti cal plane as saidfirst horizontal member, spring biased rods having ends journalled insaid first and second horizontal members, a microswitch attached to saidsecond horizontal member, a contact secured to said first horizontalmember in the same vertical plane of movement as said microswitchwhereby on applying said first member against said wrapping paper onsaid pile said spring biased rods move in said journals to bring saidmicroswitch into touch with said contact on said second member toactuate said means for separating said upper part of said pile from saidlower part.

12. Apparatus for securing a length of wrapping paper over the top andopposed sides of a pile of discrete articles, comprising, means forapplying a mid portion of said wrapping paper against the top of saidpile with end portions of said wrapping paper depending against saidsides, means movable towards the sides of said pile responsive toactuation of said first means for separating an upper part of said pilefrom a lower part at least at the edges thereof, and means responsive tosaid separating means for tucking said end portions between saidseparated upper part and lower part and means for restraining saidtucking means until said separation of said upper part from said lowerpart.

13. Apparatus for securing a length of wrapping paper over the top andopposed sides of a pipe of discrete articles, comprising, means forapplying a mid portion,

of said wrapping paper against the top of said pile with end portions ofsaid wrapping paper depending against said sides, means movable towardsthe sides of said pile responsive to actuation of said first means forseparating an upper part of said pile from a lower part at least at theedges thereof, means responsive to said separating means for tuckingsaid end portions between said separated upper part and lower part,means for restraining said tucking means until said separation of saidupper part from said lower part and means responsive to said separatingmeans for releasing said restraining means after separation of saidupper part from said lower part.

14. Apparatus for securing a length of wrapping paper over the top andopposed sides of a pile of discrete articles comprising, means forapplying a mid portion of said wrapping paper against the top of saidpile the end portions of said wrapping paper depending against saidsides, means movable towards the sides of said pile responsive toactuation of said first means for separating an upper part of said pilefrom a lower, part at least at the edges thereof, means responsive tosaid separating means terminating in a plane below said separating meansfor tucking said end portions between said separated upper part and saidlower part, means for restraining said tucking means until saidseparation of said upper part. from said lower par-t and spring meansfor rotating the end of said tucking means to the plane of separation ofsaid upper part from said lower part before said restraining means isreleased.

15. Apparatus for securing a length of wrapping paper over the top andopposed sides of a pile of discrete articles, comprising, means forapplying a mid portion of said wrapping paper against the top of saidpile the end portions of said wrapping paper depending against saidsides, means movable towards the sides of said pile responsive toactuation of said first means for separating an upper part of said pilefrom a lower part at least at the edges thereof, means terminating in aplane below said separating means and responsive thereto for tuckingsaid end portions between said separated upper part and said lower part,means for restraining said tucking means until said separation of saidupper part from said lower part, spring means responsive to saidseparating means for rotating the end of said tucking means to the planeof separation of said upper part from said lower part before saidrestraining means is released and means responsive to said separatingmeans for releasing said restraining means.

16. Apparatus for securing a length of wrapping paper over the top andopposed sides of a pile of discrete articles, comprising, means forapplying a mid portion of said wrapping paper against the top of saidpile the end portions of said wrapping paper depending against saidsides, means movable towards the sides of said pile responsive toactuation of said first means for separating an upper part of said pilefrom a lower part at least at the edges thereof, means terminating in aplane below said separating means and responsive thereto for tuckingsaid end portions between said separated upper part and said lower part,means for restraining said tucking means until said separation of saidupper part from said lower part, spring means responsive to saidseparating means for rotating the end of said tucking means to the planeof separation of said upper part from said lower part before saidrestraining means is released, means for releasing said restrainingmeans responsive to said separating means and spring means for actuatingsaid tucking means responsive to said releasing means.

17. Apparatus for securing a length of wrapping paper over the top andopposed sides of a pile of discrete articles, comprising, first meansfor applying a mid portion of said wrapping paper against the top ofsaid pile with end portions of said wrapping paper depending about saidsides, second means responsive to actuation of said firs-t means forseparating an upper part of said pile from a lower part at least at theedges thereof, substantially vertical support means carried by saidfirst means and spaced therefrom, a third arm pivotably attached to theupper end of said vertical support means and projecting downwards andoutwards with respect to said first means, a fourth arm pivotablymounted at the lower end of said third arm and projecting inwards anddownwards with respect to said first means and terminating below saidsecond means and means for actuating said fourth arm responsive toseparating said upper part from said lower part to tuck said portionsbetween said separated upper part and said lower part.

18. Apparatus for securing a length of wrapping paper over the top andopposed sides of a pile of discrete articles, comprising, first meansfor applying a mid portion of said wrapping paper against the top ofsaid pile with end portions of said wrapping paper depending about saidsides, second means responsive to actuation of said first means forseparating an upper part of said pile from a lower part at least at theedges thereof, substantially vertical support means carried by saidfirst means for applying a mid port-ion to said wrapping paper andspaced therefrom, a third arm pivotably attached to the upper end ofsaid vertical support means and projecting downwards and outwards withrepect to said first means, a fourth arm pivotably mounted at the lowerend of said third arm and projecting inwards and downwards with respectto said first means and terminating below said second means and springmeans actuating said fourth arm responsive to separating said upper partfrom said lower part to tuck said portions between said separated upperpart and said lower part.

19. Apparatus for securing a length of wrapping paper over the top andopposed sides of a pile of discrete articles, comprising, first meansfor applying a mid portion of said wrapping paper against the top ofsaid pile with end portions of said wrapping paper depending about saidsides, second means responsive to actuation of said first means forseparating an upper part of said pile from a lower part at least at theedges thereof, substantially vertical support means carried by saidfirst means for applying a mid portion to said wrapping paper and spacedtherefrom, a third arm pivotably attached to the upper end of saidvertical support means and projecting downwards and outwards withrespect to said first means, a fourth arm pivotably mounted at the lowerend of said third arm and projecting inwards and downwards with respectto said first means and terminating below said second means, springmeans actuating said fourth arm responsive to separating said upper partfrom said lower part to tuck said portions between said separated upperpart and said lower part and means restraining said spring means untilsaid separation of said upper part from said lower part.

20. Apparatus for securing a length of wrapping paper over the top andopposed sides of a pile of discrete articles comprising, first means forapplying a mid portion of said wrapping paper against the top of saidpile with end portions of said wrapping paper depending about saidsides, second means responsive to actuation of said first means forseparating an upper part of said pile from a lower part at least at theedges thereof, substantially vertical support means carried by saidfirst means for applying a mid portion to said wrapping paper and spacedtherefrom, a third arm pivotably attached to the upper end of saidvertical support means and projecting downwards and outwards withrespect to said first means, a fourth arm pivotably mounted at the lowerend of said third arm and projecting inwards and downwards with respectto said first means and terminating below said second means, springmeans actuating said fourth arm responsive to separating said upper partfrom said lower part to tuck said portions between said separated upperpart and said lower part, means restraining said spring means until saidseparation of said upper part from said lower part and means responsiveto said separating means for releasing said restraining means afterseparation of said upper part from said lower part.

21. Apparatus for securing a length of wrapping paper over the top andopposed sides of a pile of discrete articles comprising, means forapplying a mid portion of said wrapping paper against the top of saidpile with end portions of said wrapping paper depending about saidsides, first opposed means responsive to actuation of said first meansfor separating at said opposed side of said pile an upper part of saidpile from a lower part at least at the edges thereof, spring meansattached to said first means restricting the separation of said upperpart of said pile from said lower part and second opposed means,responsive to separation of said upper part from said lower part, fortucking said end portions between said upper part and said lower part atopposed sides of said pile.

22. Apparatus for securing a length of wrapping paper over the top andopposed sides of a pile of discrete articles, comprising, means forapplying a mid portion of said wrapping paper against the top of saidpile with end portions of aid wrapping paper depending about said sides,first opposed identical means responsive to actuation of said firstmeans, each separating at said opposed sides of said pile an upper partof said pile from a lower part at least at the edges thereof, secondopposed identical means, responsive to separation of said upper partfrom said lower part, for tucking said end portions between said upperpart and said lower part at opposed sides of said pile, and flexiblemeans responsive to said application means connecting said secondopposed means extending over the top of said wrapping paper to conformit against said sides.

23. Apparatus for securing a length of wrapping paper over the top andopposed sides of a pile of discrete articles, comprising, means forapplying a mid portion of said wrapping paper against the top of saidpile with end portions of said wrapping paper depending about saidsides, first opposed means responsive to actuation of said first means,each separating at said opposed sides of said pile an upper part of saidpile from a lower part at least at the edges thereof, spring meansattached to said application means for restricting the separation ofsaid upper part of said pile from said lower part, second opposed meansresponsive to separation of said upper part from aid lower part, fortucking said end portions between said upper part and said lower part atopposed sides of said pile and flexible means responsive to saidapplication means connecting said second opposed means eX- tending overthe top of said wrapping paper to conform it against said sides.

24. Apparatus for securing a length of wrapping paper over the top andopposed sides of a pile of discrete articles, comprising, first meansfor applying a mid portion of said wrapping paper against the top ofsaid pile with end portions of said wrapping paper depending about saidsides, second means responsive to actuation of said first means forseperating an upper part of said pile from a lower part at least at theedges thereof, means responsive to said separating means for tuckingsaid portions between said separated upper part and said lower partcomprising, a substantially horizontal beam member carried by said firstmeans movable in a vertical plane above said pile normal to said sidesthereof, spaced substantially vertical support'means carried by saidhorizontal member intermediate of its ends, pivotably attached to theupper end of each of said vertical support .means a third arm projectingdownwards and outwards with respect to said first means, a braceconnecting the lower ends of said third arms, pivotably mounted at thelower end of each of said third arms a fourth arm projecting inwards anddownwards with respect to said first means and terminating below saidsecond means, first spring means connecting said third arm to saidfourth arm urging said fourth arm inwards to a horizontal plane with itsfree end towards the side of said pile, said inward movement beingrestrained by said second means, second spring means connecting saidbrace and said first means urging said fourth arms towards said side ofsaid pile and means restraining said second spring means comprising, acam pivotably counted adjacent the free end of said horizontal memberand third spring means connecting said cam and said horizontal memberwhereby said cam bears outward against said brace, and means releasingsaid restraining means when said fourth arm has reached a substantiallyhorizontal position.

25. Apparatus for securing a length of wrapping paper over the top andopposed sides of a pile of discrete articles, comprising, first meansfor applying a mid portion of said wrapping paper against the top ofsaid pile with end portion of said wrapping paper depending about saidsides, second means responsive to actuation of said first means forseparating an upper part of said pile from a lower part at least at theedges thereof, means responsive to said separating means for tuckingsaid end portions between said separated upper part and said lower partcomprising, a substantially horizontal beam member carried by said firstmeans movable in a vertical plane above said pile normal to said sidesthereof, spaced substantially vertical support means carried by saidhorizontal member intermediate of its ends, pivotably attached to theupper end of each of said vertical support means a third arm projectingdownwards and outwards with respect to said first means, a braceconnecting the lower ends of said third arm, pivotably mounted at thelower end of each of said third arms, a fourth arm projecting inwardsand downwards with respect to said first means and terminating belowsaid second means, first spring means connecting said third arm to saidfourth arm urging said fourth arm inwards to a substantially horizontalplane with its free end towards the side of said pile, said inwardmovement being restrained by said second means, second spring meansconnecting said brace and said first means urging said fourth armstowards said side of said pile, and means restraining said second springmeans comprising, a cam pivotably mounted adjacent the free end of saidhorizontal member, third spring means connecting said cam and saidhorizontal member whereby said cam bears outward against said brace,means releasing said restraining means comprising, a cylinder positionedbelow said horizontal beam and secured to said first means, a pistonmovable in said cylinder, secured to the end of said piston a platewhich terminates in a substantially horizontal plane above that of thelowest level of said cam whereby on actuation of said piston in saidcylinder said plate bears against said cam tilting it outwards anddownwards to release said brace when said fourth arm has reached asubstantially horizontal position.

No references cited;

FRANK E. BAILEY, Primary Examiner. L. S. BOUCHARD, Assistant Examiner.

1. APPRATUS FOR SECURING A LENGTH OF WRAPPING PAPER OVER THE TOP ANDOPPOSED SIDES OF A PILE OF DISCRETE ARTICLES, COMPRISING, FIRST MEANSFOR APPLYING A MID PORTION OF SAID WRAPPING PAPER AGAINST THE TOP OFSAID PILE, WITH END PORTIONS OF SAID WRAPPING PAPER DEPENDING AGAINSTSAID SIDES, MEANS RESPONSIVE TO ACTUATION OF SAID FIRST MEANS FORSEPARATING AN UPPER PART OF SAID PILE FROM A LOWER PART AT LEAST AT THEEDGES THEREOF AND MEANS RESPONSIVE TO SEPARATING SAID UPPER PART FROMSAID LOWER PART FOR TUCKING SAID END PORTIONS BETWEEN SAID SEPARATEDUPPER PART AND SAID LOWER PART.